Wipeout and Winks
Wipeout and Winks
-A Wiki Wiki Rom-Com Story-
It’s my first morning in Hawaii and I’m already flat on my face.
Literally.
The surfboard pops up like it’s got a vendetta, smacks me in the ribs, and sends me flailing into the Pacific like a flailing spaghetti noodle.
“Dude,” someone says, laughing behind me, “you okay?”
I resurface, spitting out half the Pacific and blinking through salty lashes.
And there she is.
Sun-bleached hair in a messy bun. Bronze skin. Neon-pink rash guard with the words SURF LIKE A GIRL stretched across the front.
She’s on her board like she was born there, grinning down at me. “Not bad for your first try,” she says. “You lasted a solid… four seconds.”
I want to be embarrassed, but she’s laughing in this light, breezy way that makes me laugh too. Even with salt water burning my nose.
“Four seconds is better than I expected,” I admit.
She offers her hand. “I’m Kiana. You must be my 9 a.m.”
“Eli,” I say, taking her hand. Her fingers are small but strong. She pulls me up like it’s nothing. “Nice to meet you, Kiana.”
“Nice to meet you, Eli.” She paddles in front of me like a mermaid, glancing over her shoulder. “I promise you’ll leave this island with at least one good ride.”
I’m pretty sure I already have one.
Turns out Kiana has the patience of a saint and the sense of humor of a stand-up comic.
By our third wave attempt, I’ve swallowed enough seawater to qualify as a human sponge, and she’s still encouraging me like I’m in the Olympics.
“Remember,” she says, “bend your knees. Low center of gravity. You’re not a giraffe on roller skates.”
“Too late,” I mutter, wobbling upright before immediately wiping out again. She lets out a whoop that echoes across the waves.
I float on my back, catching my breath, watching her silhouette against the morning sun. She’s graceful and wild all at once. Like this beach is her stage and she’s been rehearsing since birth.
“So,” she calls out. “What brings you to O‘ahu? Besides your obvious desire to drown in front of strangers?”
“I’m visiting my cousin,” I say, paddling closer. “He lives in Kailua. Said I needed to loosen up and take a surf lesson.”
“Loose is good,” she says with a wink. “You mainland guys are all stress and spreadsheets.”
“Hey. I haven’t opened a spreadsheet in… three days.”
She gasps. “Tragic. You must be twitching.”
I grin. “A little.”
She smiles again, and this time it softens around the edges. “You’re not so bad, Eli.”
“I’d be better if I stopped belly-flopping.”
“You’d be boring if you stopped belly-flopping.”
After the lesson, we’re sitting on the beach with malasadas from the food truck near the surf shop. Mine’s covered in liliko‘i sugar, and I’ve got powdered sugar all over my shirt. Kiana doesn’t mention it—just flicks a crumb off my cheek like it’s normal to touch a guy’s face after knowing him for an hour and a half.
“Thanks for not giving up on me,” I say.
She shrugs. “You’re a quick learner. And you didn’t cry when you fell, so that’s already better than my last student.”
“You’re kidding.”
“I’m not.”
We both laugh, and the breeze picks up, ruffling her hair across her eyes. She doesn’t brush it away. Just lets it fly.
“So what do you do, back home?” she asks, licking sugar off her thumb.
“Software developer.”
“Whoa. Big brain stuff.”
“Not really. I mostly just fix broken buttons and yell at error codes.”
“That still sounds smarter than my job.”
“I watched you do a handstand on a moving surfboard, Kiana. You’re basically an Avenger.”
That makes her laugh again, and this time she tips her head back like she means it. I can’t stop looking at her. She’s sunshine wrapped in skin.
Somehow, “see you around” turns into seeing her every day for the rest of the week.
She teaches me to surf—like really surf—and I help her fix the clunky reservation system at the shop in exchange. We eat poke bowls on the curb, sneak into a local music fest, and once, she drags me up a ridge trail to watch the sunrise, even though I complain the entire way.
I fall for her in the kind of way that doesn’t feel like falling. More like floating. Like being carried by a wave that knows exactly where it’s going.
On my last day, we’re back where it all started—on the beach, surfboards beside us, ocean shimmering like a promise.
“I wish I wasn’t leaving,” I say.
She doesn’t look at me, just digs her toes into the sand. “I know.”
“Would it be insane if I came back next month?”
Her eyes lift. “You mean… for vacation?”
“No. For you.”
Her breath catches.
“I can work remotely,” I say. “All I need is my laptop and decent Wi-Fi. I want to be here. With you. If you want that, too.”
She smiles, and it’s different this time—like sunrise after a storm. “Only if you promise to keep wiping out.”
I reach for her hand, the same way I did that first day in the water. “Deal.”
🌊 THE END 🌊
Author's note
Wipeout and Winks is a sweet, funny short story told from Eli’s POV—a tourist who takes a surf lesson and falls for the local girl who teaches him.
And honestly? That kind of story happens all the time here in Hawaii. Maybe it’s the warm people. Maybe it’s the island magic. Either way… love has a way of sneaking up on you here.